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King Leck
King Leck was an antagonist in Graceling and Fire. He is a tall man with one red eye (covered by an eye patch) and one gray eye. ''Fire Leck's past is explained in the prologue of ''Fire. Leck was born near a riverside estate in northern Monsea with two brown eyes and the name "Immiker." His mother, Mikra, who died during childbirth, devastated his father, Larch. Immiker was raised by Larch and his nursemaid, and while Larch could see no wrong in the boy, the nursemaid was always suspicious and checking Immiker's eyes. Immiker was an intelligent baby, and by the time he was fifteen months old he was already speaking in sentences, and at eighteen months he no longer spoke with babyish mumbling. Disturbed at Immiker's rapid mental development, the nursemaid resigned. At three years old, Immiker's eyes settled, alerting him and Larch to the fact that he was a Graceling. He instructed his father to withold him from the king. They fled into the mountains, where, despite Larch's terrible injuries, Immiker used his Grace to force his father to keep moving, all the while Immiker remained unharmed and unconcerned for his father's agony. They emerged in the Dells and began a life in which Larch depended on Immiker to translate and tell him what to do. Monsters hungered not just for human flesh, but for Immiker's flesh in particular. As soon as he was big enough to wield one, Immiker learned how to use a bow to defend himself; he also defends himself by learning to guard his mind against their mental powers. As Larch notes the presences of many different people, who come and go, it can be inferred that Immiker used his Grace to persuade people to teach and protect him. Immiker developed a hobby of "playing" with little monsters by torturing and dissecting them. At age ten, he was covered in blood, torturing one, when Larch happened across him and told him that he thought Immiker's Grace may be mind control. Immiker, delighted and amused at the man's insight despite his fogged mind, laughed and hugged Larch, stabbing him in the stomach and killing him. Immiker left the house they had been living in, setting on fire as he did. He wanted a new, exciting life, and for this new life he chose a new name: Leck, how the Dellian people had mispronounced Larch's name. Many years later (and in the main book), Leck comes to the palace with Cutter. Fire first spots him torturing a monster mouse with a string around its neck. His appearance unsettles her, though he seems to be fascinated with her in turn. He leaves, saying, "I'm glad I got to talk to you. You were even better than I thought you would be," Only after he is gone does Fire realize Leck is behind the foggy-minded people. It is suggested he is after her, for whatever reason being unknown. Later on, the archers who've been attacking Fire poison her with a sleeping dart. Fire wakes up on a boat with Leck, and Leck commands Jod to shoot her. He continues to do so, and when he gets Fire to his house, Fire realizes that while he can control minds, he's unable to see inside them. She uses this to her advantage to slip a sleeping dart into her sleeve, and takes out Leck with it. Later on, after she's run away, he approaches her and tells her that he wants to become allies. Fire's horse rears up and knocks his eye, and screaming, he stumbles back, falls into the mountain crack, and finds himself in Monsea. After Fire, before Graceling Leck was named the heir of the King and Queen of Monsea after he appeared at their court and made everyone love him. Shortly after he was named heir, the King and Queen of Monsea as well as two of their closest counselors died. Leck began his thirty-five-year rein in Monsea. He married Ashen, Lienid princess and sister to King Ror, and had a daughter with her, Bitterblue. His Grace stopped working on Ashen when she realized he planned to hurt Bitterblue, leading both wife and daughter to lock themselves in their quarters and eventually escape. He pursued the two, killing Ashen when he finally caught up with her, and scouring the forest for Bitterblue. Due to the injury he sustained at a young age, he covers one of his eyes with an eyepatch, which has the added benefit of hiding the fact he's a Graceling. ''Graceling In ''Graceling, Leck is the King of Monsea. Although he is renowned for his kindness towards small animals and children, he is actually a sadist who enjoys torturing and experimenting on people and animals alike. This has not come to light due to his powerful Grace: to control and influence people with his words. When Katsa and Po travel across the mountains to get to Monsea, they find him near the edge of the forest by the mountain pass. Leck is chasing Ashen in a carriage, and shoots her in the back, killing her. Po tries to get Katsa to shoot him, but Katsa is confused by Leck's Grace and refuses to. The two of them run away from him. Leck orders his army to search the forest for Bitterblue. Once they find Bitterblue, Po tries to kill Leck, but fails, and is injured. Later, Katsa and Bitterblue travel to Po's castle in Lienid and find that Leck is there, using his Grace on the entire royal family of Lienid. He is killed by Katsa when he tries to reveal the truth of Po's Grace. ''Bitterblue King Leck does not physically appear in ''Bitterblue, but, the lies he told while alive cause Bitterblue, and Monsea, trouble. Much of the book focuses on Leck's lies and secrets. Character Personality Even as a young child, Leck was cold and cruel, displaying psychopathic behaviors. He also seemed to have a strange facination with torture and dissection. Even without the use of his Grace, his manipulative tongue and confusing words are obvious. There are also some hints of him holding a God Complex because of his belief that weaker creatures should bow before him and that it is his right to exert dominance. Trivia *At the end of Bitterblue, Immiker is also spelled Eemkerr. *The name Immiker might be based off the word "Moniker" which means name and is often used in reference to what you prefer to be called, such as a nickname or alias. Category:Characters Category:Males Category:Fire Characters Category:Graceling Characters Category:Deceased Category:Antagonists Category:Kings